One of the very kindest things you can do for yourself is to take a little extra time on a Saturday, prep a few meals in advance, and freeze them for future you. Knowing there’s something homemade and delicious waiting in your freezer when it’s been a year of a day is such a load off your mind. These freezer burritos are the ideal rainy-day meal to keep in your freezer. They’re so good, filling, and they go from frozen to piping hot and ready to eat in just 4 to 5 minutes.
The best thing about these burritos is that they are totally customizable. The base filling is packed with spices, so it’s incredibly flavorful on its own, meaning you can add just about any meat or protein to it and you’re going to have a fantastic burrito. I always have some version of these burritos in my freezer these days, and I’ve filled them with tons of different fillings and loved every single one of them.
Ingredients
Cilantro rice: I like to use a long-grain rice like jasmine or basmati for burritos, but you can use whatever rice you have on hand. It cooks with chicken broth instead of water for extra flavor and fresh chopped cilantro is stirred in at the end. Don’t skip the cilantro in this recipe. Even though there’s only 1/4 cup, it really adds so much good flavor! Beans: You can use canned pinto or black beans here, but I prefer pinto beans. A large onion: Any color onion will work. I typically use a yellow onion. Tomato paste and fresh garlic: Tomato paste and garlic both help build the base flavor of the beans. If you have extra tomato paste, check out my post What to Do With Leftover Tomato Paste for storage tips and recipe ideas for the leftovers. Spices: This recipe will use ground cumin, oregano, and either chipotle chili powder or plain chili powder. If you have it, I love chipotle chili powder here. It adds a fantastic heat to the burrito filling, but regular chili powder is also delicious. Meat of choice: For this recipe, you’ll use ether 1 pound of raw meat or 2 cups of cooked meat. That means if you want to use raw hamburger or chopped chicken breast use 1 pound—the recipe will explain how to cook it. Or add 2 cups cooked meat like carnitas, carne asada, cooked chicken, barbacoa, or even shredded tri-tip towards the end of the cooking time. Chicken broth and lime juice: Chicken broth added to the mix helps keep everything moist, and a squeeze of lime juice adds just the right acidic kick to finish off the filling. 10-inch flour tortillas: 10-inch “burrito-size” tortillas are the perfect size for this amount of filling. If all you can find at the store are 12-inch tortillas, I recommend cutting them down to 10 inches with a paring knife or kitchen shears. (You can cut the scraps into pieces, spray them with cooking spray and bake them to make them into tortilla chips.) Cheese: Cheese is optional. If you want to use it, go with a good melting cheese like cheddar or jack. Toppings: Sour cream, guacamole, pico de gallo, your favorite salsa, or hot sauce are always good options.
How to Make Freezer Burritos
How to Freeze Burritos
To prepare burritos for freezing, wrap them individually in plastic wrap and store them in a large freezer bag.
How to Reheat Frozen Burritos
To reheat frozen burritos in the microwave, remove plastic, wrap burrito in a paper towel, and microwave for 4 to 5 minutes, flipping once halfway through.
How long will burritos last in the freezer?
For best results, eat burritos within a month. The tortillas will slowly dry out in the freezer, and the places where you have a double layer of folded tortilla can become tough. However, I often store mine for up to two months without a huge noticeable loss in quality. If I find the bottom seam of the burritos is getting hard to cut through, I’ll just tear it off right after it comes out of the microwave while it’s still warm and pliable. These burritos are easiest to eat with a fork anyway, so it doesn’t matter it some of the filling is coming out of the bottom.
What to serve with freezer burritos?
Go with a super simple side for your burritos like microwave steamed broccoli or green beans. Or serve alongside tortilla chips and salsa (or maybe smothered in nacho sauce or cheese sauce).
More Easy Dinner Recipes
Salsa Chicken Chicken and Broccoli Orzo Teriyaki Beef Baked Ziti Cheesy Sausage Potato Soup
Recipe Adapted From: The Make-ahead Cook This post may contain affiliate links, which means I receive a small commission if you make a purchase using them. There is absolutely no additional cost to you.
